Ben Roethlisberger has been everything and more that the Pittsburgh Steelers could have hoped for since drafting him in 2004. The list of awards and accomplishments that he’s compiled during just nine seasons is enough to merit Hall of Fame consideration already.

When you look at the list, it’s hard to think that you could ask anymore of a guy who was a Rookie of the Year, the youngest starting quarterback to ever win a Super Bowl, a two-time Pro Bowler, a two-time Super Bowl champion and has become the Steelers all-time leading passer.

But now that Pittsburgh has been somewhat dismantled and are coming off a year of missing the postseason for only the third time since Roethlisberger joined the team, they will need their broad-shouldered quarterback to carry an even bigger load than normal.

Roethlisberger has done it before; he’s taken the team and willed them to win, and he’s going to have to do it again in his 10th season.

It’s still going to be a long year in Pittsburgh, and they will probably suffer their first two consecutive year stretch of missing the playoffs since 1998-2000, but if anyone can make it interesting and keep hope alive in Pittsburgh, it’s Roethlisberger.

The one-time unknown out of Miami (OH) University now has secured his place in the ranks of the top quarterbacks in the league. It’s just fun watching Roethlisberger play. He directs the sandlot football offense practically better than anyone in the league, and he makes some of the best pass-rushing defenders in the league just look silly at times.

The question remains now, will Roethlisberger be able to get the same job done with a lot of missing pieces and new faces? Pittsburgh’s defense carried them along for the last few years. Now with that group seemingly beginning to see a state of flux, it’s going to be up to Roethlisberger to step in.